Effects of leaf traits of tropical trees on the abundance and body mass of herbivorous arthropod communities.
In tropical forests, herbivorous arthropods remove between 7% up to 48% of leaf area, which has forced plants to evolve defense strategies. These strategies influence the palatability of leaves. Palatability, which reflects a syndrome of leaf traits, in turn influences both the abundance and the mea...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Public Library of Science (PLoS)
2023-01-01
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| Series: | PLoS ONE |
| Online Access: | https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article/file?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0288276&type=printable |
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| author | Jana E Schön Yvonne Tiede Marcel Becker David A Donoso Jürgen Homeier Oliver Limberger Jörg Bendix Nina Farwig Roland Brandl |
| author_facet | Jana E Schön Yvonne Tiede Marcel Becker David A Donoso Jürgen Homeier Oliver Limberger Jörg Bendix Nina Farwig Roland Brandl |
| author_sort | Jana E Schön |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | In tropical forests, herbivorous arthropods remove between 7% up to 48% of leaf area, which has forced plants to evolve defense strategies. These strategies influence the palatability of leaves. Palatability, which reflects a syndrome of leaf traits, in turn influences both the abundance and the mean body mass not only of particular arthropod taxa but also of the total communities. In this study, we tested two hypotheses: (H1) The abundance of two important chewer guilds ('leaf chewers' and 'rostrum chewers'), dominant components of arthropod communities, is positively related to the palatability of host trees. (H2) Lower palatability leads to an increased mean body mass of chewers (Jarman-Bell principle). Arthropods were collected by fogging the canopies of 90 tropical trees representing 31 species in three plots at 1000 m and three at 2000 m a.s.l. Palatability was assessed by measuring several 'leaf traits' of each host tree and by conducting a feeding trial with the generalist herbivore Gryllus assimilis (Orthoptera, Gryllidae). Leaf traits provided partial support for H1, as abundance of leaf chewers but not of rostrum chewers was positively affected by the experimentally estimated palatability. There was no support for H2 as neither leaf traits nor experimentally estimated palatability affected the mean body mass of leaf chewers. The mean body mass of rostrum chewers was positively related to palatability. Thus, leaf traits and experimentally estimated palatability influenced the abundance and mean body mass of chewing arthropods on the community level. However, the data were not consistent with the Jarman-Bell principle. Overall, our results suggest that the palatability of leaves is not among the dominant factors influencing abundance and mean body mass of the community of chewing arthropod herbivores. If other factors, such as the microclimate, predation or further (a-)biotic interactions are more important has to be analyzed in refined studies. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-11T10:45:42Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-224a7dbedc7040c3a6a1c8c20cbaa70d |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1932-6203 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-11T10:45:42Z |
| publishDate | 2023-01-01 |
| publisher | Public Library of Science (PLoS) |
| record_format | Article |
| series | PLoS ONE |
| spelling | doaj.art-224a7dbedc7040c3a6a1c8c20cbaa70d2023-11-14T05:34:34ZengPublic Library of Science (PLoS)PLoS ONE1932-62032023-01-011811e028827610.1371/journal.pone.0288276Effects of leaf traits of tropical trees on the abundance and body mass of herbivorous arthropod communities.Jana E SchönYvonne TiedeMarcel BeckerDavid A DonosoJürgen HomeierOliver LimbergerJörg BendixNina FarwigRoland BrandlIn tropical forests, herbivorous arthropods remove between 7% up to 48% of leaf area, which has forced plants to evolve defense strategies. These strategies influence the palatability of leaves. Palatability, which reflects a syndrome of leaf traits, in turn influences both the abundance and the mean body mass not only of particular arthropod taxa but also of the total communities. In this study, we tested two hypotheses: (H1) The abundance of two important chewer guilds ('leaf chewers' and 'rostrum chewers'), dominant components of arthropod communities, is positively related to the palatability of host trees. (H2) Lower palatability leads to an increased mean body mass of chewers (Jarman-Bell principle). Arthropods were collected by fogging the canopies of 90 tropical trees representing 31 species in three plots at 1000 m and three at 2000 m a.s.l. Palatability was assessed by measuring several 'leaf traits' of each host tree and by conducting a feeding trial with the generalist herbivore Gryllus assimilis (Orthoptera, Gryllidae). Leaf traits provided partial support for H1, as abundance of leaf chewers but not of rostrum chewers was positively affected by the experimentally estimated palatability. There was no support for H2 as neither leaf traits nor experimentally estimated palatability affected the mean body mass of leaf chewers. The mean body mass of rostrum chewers was positively related to palatability. Thus, leaf traits and experimentally estimated palatability influenced the abundance and mean body mass of chewing arthropods on the community level. However, the data were not consistent with the Jarman-Bell principle. Overall, our results suggest that the palatability of leaves is not among the dominant factors influencing abundance and mean body mass of the community of chewing arthropod herbivores. If other factors, such as the microclimate, predation or further (a-)biotic interactions are more important has to be analyzed in refined studies.https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article/file?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0288276&type=printable |
| spellingShingle | Jana E Schön Yvonne Tiede Marcel Becker David A Donoso Jürgen Homeier Oliver Limberger Jörg Bendix Nina Farwig Roland Brandl Effects of leaf traits of tropical trees on the abundance and body mass of herbivorous arthropod communities. PLoS ONE |
| title | Effects of leaf traits of tropical trees on the abundance and body mass of herbivorous arthropod communities. |
| title_full | Effects of leaf traits of tropical trees on the abundance and body mass of herbivorous arthropod communities. |
| title_fullStr | Effects of leaf traits of tropical trees on the abundance and body mass of herbivorous arthropod communities. |
| title_full_unstemmed | Effects of leaf traits of tropical trees on the abundance and body mass of herbivorous arthropod communities. |
| title_short | Effects of leaf traits of tropical trees on the abundance and body mass of herbivorous arthropod communities. |
| title_sort | effects of leaf traits of tropical trees on the abundance and body mass of herbivorous arthropod communities |
| url | https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article/file?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0288276&type=printable |
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